Almost two weeks after he was shot to death at his Upper Lonsdale home, homicide investigators are asking for the Iranian Canadian community's help in finding the killer of Rostam Poulad-Noshiravan.
The well-known 69-year-old Persian music and culture promoter died at the scene on the 4000-block of St. George Avenue after being shot on Nov. 30.
The killing has left Poulad-Noshiravan's family and investigators baffled, according to IHIT.
"Given the victim's close ties to the Iranian community in the North Shore and rest of the Lower Mainland and the circumstances of the murder, we believe that someone within the Iranian community has the answers we are looking for," said Sgt. Bari Emam, IHIT spokesman in a press release.
"I ask anyone who has any information no matter how trivial to please contact us about this case. This was a senseless act and the victim's family deserves to know why this happened."
The request from IHIT comes as no surprise to Hadi Ebrahimi, editor of Shahrvand, a North Shore-based Persian interest newspaper, as police were already coming to the Persian community looking for help in finding a suspect. But the killing remains a mystery among local Persians as well, Ebrahimi said.
"The Persian community is asking themselves: 'Who is the guy? Why was (Poulad-Noshiravan) targeted? And why did the guy who killed him not ask for any money or anything?'" he said. "We don't have any new information. Everybody is shocked and they want to know what is behind this killing."
Poulad-Noshiravan, who before becoming a cultural event promoter and ticket seller ran a Persian grocery store in Vancouver, had no political leanings, Ebrahimi said so assassination by the Iranian government could be ruled out.
Anyone with information is asked to call IHIT's tip line at 778-290-5290 or remain anonymous by calling CrimeStoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
